Rock, Paper, Shotgun

EDIT: Boo! Looks like the patch has been delayed after all, due to an issue with DLC compatibility. “We will update when we know more,” say CD Projekt.

Inbound at some point this evening is a v1.1 patch for The Witcher 2. Anything exciting in there? Ah, not really, it’s all bugfixes and performance upgrades. That said, the patch notes promise an “approximately 5% to 30% better framerate and faster game loading for many users, depending on their individual systems and game versions. Owners of retail versions can expect the biggest improvements.” So, mostly of interest to twitching luddites who insist on owning DVDs and any of you who bought the absurd Collector’s Edition, then.

v1.1 will also bring with it an option to invert the mouse, for those of you who think Geralt is an aeroplane. The developers are promising a second patch next week, and you’ll find the full patch notes after the jump.
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So. Finished. I even had a little time to play through some of the alternate storyline stuff. What do I think? Well, I don’t think I’ll be putting any spoilers in this review, so you can read my thoughts on the subject with some degree of safety. If something else needs go above the jump here, it should probably be this: The Witcher 2 is going end up being talked about for a very long time to come.

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Still not quite ready for the WIT, but I have some more thoughts on The Witcher 2, below. Share your impressions too, if you are playing!
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UPDATE: Hurray, made some progress. Seem to have unblocked the storyline and carrying on towards chapter two. To clear up some misconceptions from the comments below: I’m playing the retail version patched the same as anyone who would have bought the game today. My saves from the preview build do not work, and I am not using them – or I’d already be hours into chapter two!

Also, I am talking to CDP directly about this stuff. They are super-helpful, and annoying as it was to not get any early code, I certainly don’t bear any silly grudges. This is a huge game for the PC, and I’m just keep the conversation going over here.

There so seem to be some driver issues, too. Take a look in the comments below and you’ll see a bunch of updates for people with issues.

The game is clearly going to be patched a whole bunch more, and that’s a shame. I’ll be reviewing it as soon as I get it finished, whatever state it might be in at that time.

Why not? Well, I’m afraid our code only unlocked at midday yesterday, and I’m not going to rush this for anyone. We’d been told to expect to get the game last week, but CD Projekt later insisted that RPS, Eurogamer, and a number of other online outlets wait for their day zero patch, which they completed on Sunday. You will see some print magazine reviews go up today, these are based on early code which CDP described to us as “outdated”. We’ll be reviewing what you’ll actually be playing this week. I have some early thoughts below, and will follow with further impressions and then a full WIT later in the week.
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Oh, this is just odd. Ahead of The Witcher 2′s release date tomorrow CD Projekt have released a total of four launch trailers across four different sites. Why don’t you watch them all (and rate them from best to worst, or something?) while I consult the video game handbook as to whether this is allowed. They’re all after the jump.
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That headline is short for “The Witcher 2 Character Development Developer Diary”. Yes. If you’d like to watch some guys from CD Projekt talking you through all the different ways you can develop protagonist Geralt, and all the different ways you can play and he can fight, they’re waiting for you right after the jump.

The Witcher 2 is going to be great. We know this because ever since Jim played the preview build, we here at RPS have had to put up with his near-constant pining for the finished game, which sounds like a cross between a lupine whimper and an Amiga 1200′s boot noise. May 17th can’t come soon enough.
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What follows are impressions of The Witcher 2 based on the limited preview code that Namco and CD Projekt recently released to the press. It’s the prologue and first chapter of the full game, and as such makes up a healthy chunk of play time. People are saying about ten hours, but I think I spent longer than that with it. I’ll avoid specific narrative spoilers, but I won’t be avoiding game-mechanic spoilers. What that means is that I’ll be talking about how the game works, but not that much about what actually happens. This is not a game where you want to know about the surprises.

So let’s take a look at everything else.
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It’s quite fancy. (Click for full size.)

Will probably post some thoughts on it tomorrow.

The Witcher 2 looks shiny. But how shiny will it be? And will it really take advantage of our big strong PCs? We can find out more with a closer look a the system specs (which I’ve posted below), as well as some lovely new screenshots. I’ve got ‘em all set to click through to hi-res, should you wish to inspect them closely.

The game is out on May 17th.
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Guitar! A pine-cone monster! Communism! Short-shorts! Death! It’s all after the jump.
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